Shortly after Zomato revealed plans to introduce a distinct delivery fleet for vegetarian food, company co-founder and CEO Deepinder Goyal swiftly reversed course in less than 11 hours, opting against segregating the fleet based on customers' dietary preferences.
This comes on the heels of the food delivery company facing backlash for announcing that the delivery partners working for Zomato’s “Pure Veg Fleet” would carry green delivery boxes and wear green uniforms. The service comes in tandem with “Pure Veg Mode” of Zomato which has been tailored to meet the needs of vegetarian customers. The feature exclusively displays restaurants offering vegetarian cuisine.
Sharing an update on X, Goyal explained that though the company would still “have a fleet for vegetarians," all of their riders would continue wearing the red-coloured uniforms.
The food delivery platform shared further updates on the feature on Thursday. As per the clarification, customers cannot choose to have their orders delivered by delivery partners with a "certain dietary preference". They will be onboarded by the platform only. Furthermore, the payouts for the delivery partners will also not be impacted it any way.
Lastly, the feature which is set to be rolled out in a phased manner in the coming week, has been renamed to “veg-only mode” instead of “pure veg mode”.
Social media backlash
Zomato announced, on Tuesday, its initiative to introduce a specialised delivery fleet specifically for vegetarian food, wherein delivery executives will wear green jerseys instead of the usual red shirts.
While some welcomed this decision, app-based workers' unions, academics, and various social media users raised concerns about the potential for on-the-ground harassment resulting from segregating workers based on clothing colours.
As the food delivery platform backtracked the plan, the CEO said that this was being done so that the delivery workers “are not incorrectly associated with non-veg food, and blocked by any RWAs or societies during any special days”.
Goyal wrote on X, “We now realise that even some of our customers could get into trouble with their landlords, and that would not be a nice thing if that happened because of us.”
Zomato faced significant criticism following the announcement, with many individuals highlighting its casteist implications and the potential societal repercussions.
Calling it the "worst marketing stunt ever pulled" numerous social media users expressed concerns that this decision might worsen existing divisions and pose safety risks for delivery staff who continue to wear the traditional red shirts in areas where vegetarianism is prioritised.
The politics of food
As Zomato's 'green fleet' idea came at the receiving end of criticism, many pointed out that the decision overlooked the prevalent caste dynamics in the country. People belonging to the so-called dominant castes have always linked vegetarian food with a particular notion of 'purity'.
Furthermore, potential discrimination which could be faced by delivery workers due to the added distinction in Zomato's fleet, where individuals wearing red and green attire handle non-vegetarian and vegetarian orders respectively, cannot be ruled out.
This apprehension is compounded by existing practices such as separate entrances and exits for delivery personnel at restaurants, restrictions on restroom usage, and the inability to use the same lifts as residents in apartment complexes.
Several residential complexes across the country are also known to enforce rules against the consumption of non-vegetarian food, even if residents consume it within the privacy of their own homes.
In 2022, the Karnataka government's decision to introduce eggs in mid-day meals had also stirred controversy regarding the perceived "imposition of non-vegetarianism", when the move was expected to boost school attendance and address the health needs of malnourished children.
The food delivery platform was itself embroiled in a similar controversy not long ago. In 2019, a businessman from Madhya Pradesh cancelled his order on Zomato as the man assigned to deliver his food was a “non-Hindu”.
Following this, Zomato, replied to the customer in a tweet, saying, “Food doesn’t have a religion. It is a religion.” In light of the incident, Goyal had said they were not “sorry” to lose on business if it came in the way of their values.
Editor's note- The story has been updated in light of the recent clarification from Zomato.